MaizeGDB
Maize Genetics and Genomics Database, or MaizeGDB, is an information service focused on the genetics and genomics of the crop plant ''Zea mays. ''It is a community-based and federally funded service for researchers interested in maize sequence, locus information, phenotype, genotypic and kayrotypic variation, chromosomal variations, primers used for mapping analysis, chromosomal mapping data, and even stock. MaizeGDB also facilitates interactions between members and researchers. Researchers can use the page to search certain terms or to find links to contact information for other maize researchers who are experts in different topics relating to maize genetics and genomics. How to Use MaizeGDB The data provided by MaizeGDB can be grouped into four classes of information: 1. Genetic data, which includes loci, maps, traits, variations, and seed stocks. 2. Gene product or functional characterization records, which includes information on gene products, metabolic pathways, and mutant phenotypes. 3. Genomic and other DNA sequence files, which includes SSRs, maize sequences, probes, BACs and overgo probes. 4. Literature reference and person or organization listings, which allows researchers to contact each other to share information and ask questions. There is a search bar located in the upper right corner that can be used to search for specific information or genes. When you press "Go", the website will bring you to a page similar to the one seen in figure 3. From there, you can decide what information you are interested in. Some links include the locus lookup, sequence, and genome browser. History Maize is an important crop to researchers, as it has been used for many scientific breakthroughs, such as explaining how X-rays cause mutations and supporting the hypothesis that genetic crossovers in chromosomes is accompanied by physical crossovers. In the late 1920s, a community of maize geneticists realized they needed a way to organize, publish, and curate the data they were recording. A scientist named R. A. Emerson, along with many others, began publishing a newsletter known as the Maize Genetics Cooperation Newsletter (MNL). To better share the data, in 1991 the US Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service appointed Ed Coe, the editor of MNL, to develop an online database. MaizeDB was born and became the first biological database online. MazieDB quickly became an important research tool by maize geneticists worldwide. Seven years later, the National Science Foundation funded the Maize Gene Discovery Project (MGDP), led by Virginia Walbot and 10 research groups. The project group discovered new maize genes and developed tools to help characterize maize mutants. The information provided by MGDP was made available by another database called ZmDB. Not only did it make MGDP information accessible, but it provided search tools and services which allowed researchers to spend more time making specific discoveries outside of the lab. In 2001, the USDA-ARS created a goal to combine MaizeDB with ZmDB to create a single maize genetics and genomics database. MaizeGDB was born in 2003 and provided all the data that previously existed at either MaizeDB or ZmDB. Today, researchers at MaizeGDB make maize data available and allow other researchers to store and display their important findings. References 1. Maize Genetics and Genomics Database http://www.maizegdb.org/ 2. Maize Genetics and Genomics Database Tutorials http://tutorial.maizegdb.org/?p=365 3. Brendel, Volker and et al. ''MaizeGDB, the community database for maize genetics and genomics. ''http://nar.oxfordjournals.org/content/32/suppl_1/D393.full